Erste Asset Management GmbH Sells 3,567 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Erste Asset Management GmbH reduced its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 38.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,649 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,567 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,449,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $203,949,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 36,632.9% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 438,591 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $111,209,000 after purchasing an additional 437,397 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $358,321,000 after purchasing an additional 398,676 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 405,817 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $106,352,000 after purchasing an additional 308,935 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,292,268 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,645,972,000 after purchasing an additional 167,422 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITW has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup dropped their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Illinois Tool Works from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $269.10.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total transaction of $18,431,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at $68,516,979.20. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher A. O'herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $13,293,565.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares in the company, valued at $15,120,802.68. This represents a 46.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. Insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of ITW traded up $1.82 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $256.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 883,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,082,525. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $232.77 and a one year high of $279.13. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $258.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $260.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is 51.19%.

About Illinois Tool Works

Illinois Tool Works Inc manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment in the United States and internationally. It operates through seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products.